June Dinner Party

Appetizer- Chile Con Queso (from La Posta De Mesilla in Mesilla, NM- p. 58) and El Tovar Fire Roasted Corn Salsa (from El Tovar Lodge in South Rim Grand Canyon, AZ- p. 209)



These were both delicious! The cheese dip recipe's introduction addressed how Velveeta has fallen into culinary disrepute, but that it really is a magical product. And if a fancy retreatment can use it, so can I. Great roasted peppers and onion (that were sautéed in bacon fat, so yoou know they were yummy) made this dip really good. And the roasted corn salsa was great- with just the right amount of spice.

Soup- Pepper Picasso Soup (from Ghini’s French Café in Tucson, AZ- p. 97)



So, this was not my favorite. The soups in this cookbook have either been really amazingly flavorful or... not. This one was not. Some people said they really liked it, but I think they were just being nice. It was pretty bland. It was basically roasted bell peppers and half and half.

Entree- Tequila Braised Ribs (from Graze by Jennifer James in Albuquerque-NM- p. 151)
Side- Canyon Ranch Tamales (from Canyon Ranch in Tucson, AZ- p. 184)



I have never made ribs before and- to be honest- have not really had too many ribs in my lifetime. I am not a huge fan of really messy foods. Very prissy... I know... These were marinated in a homemade dry rub overnight, then each one was browned and put in a pan and covered with a sauce of tomatoes, broth and peppers, braised for hours, then taken out and the sauce was simmered to reduce to a thick BBQ sauce. They were really tender and the sauce had a really unique and good flavor.

Again- never made tamales before and was I was pretty nervous. I made the corn meal batter, spread it on corn husks that I had soaked, spread roasted peppers and cheese on them, then folded them up. It was the folding that had we worried, but after a few tries I got it right. I steamed them, and we kept opening them up to test them, and they would be runny. We finally just pulled them from the pot anyways and discovered that if you let them rest a little, they firm up. Good to know. But this recipe was really great with yummy flavor- I will definitely be making tamales again. And I can’t wait to experiment with meat fillings too.

Dessert- Brown Butter Berry Tart (from Yavapai Restaurant in the Enchantment Resort in Sedona AZ- p. 218)



I personally believe that anything with browned butter is delicious. You heat butter until it goes from yellow to a delicious nutty brown. I mixed that browned butter with eggs and sugar and poured it over fresh berries in a pie crust and baked into something pretty darn good. Very simple, but very good.

Banana Split Cupcakes

For those of you do not know, I am really, really lucky to have the best bonus daughter in the world. I don’t really like the term “step-mom” because I think it has some negative connotations (Cinderella, anyone?), so we have chosen “bonus mom” instead. And she truly is a bonus for me- I married an amazing man and got the greatest bonus gift ever.

One of the things that Hannah and I have in common is cupcakes! And you know how I love a cupcake! For her birthday, she got a really great cupcake cookbook, and she made the best cupcakes for us last weekend. And she made them all by herself! The cupcakes really do have amazing banana flavor and the whole thing really does taste like a banana split. So yummy!




Banana Split Cupcakes
¾ cup butter
3 eggs
2 cups all purpose flour
1 ½ teaspoons baking powder
¾ tsp salt
¼ tsp baking soda
½ cup mashed ripe banana (1 large)
1/3 cup milk
¼ cup sour cream
1 tsp. vanilla
1 cup sugar
2 pints ice cream
Toppings: whipped cream, chocolate syrup, cherries, nuts, sprinkles, etc.

1. Allow butter and eggs to stand at room temperature for 30 minutes. Meanwhile, line 24 muffin cups with paper liners. In a medium bowl stir together flour, baking powder, salt and baking soda. In a small bowl combine mashed banana, milk, sour cream and vanilla.
2. Preheat oven to 350. In a large mixing bowl beat butter with an electric mixer on medium speed for 30 seconds. Gradually add sugar, about ¼ cup at a time, beating on medium speed until light and fluffy, scraping sides of bowls. Add eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Alternately add flour mixture and banana mixture to butter mixture, beating on low speed after each addition just until combined.
3. Spoon batter into prepared muffin cups, filling each one ½ to 2/3 full. Use the back of a spoon to smooth out batter in muffin cups.
4. Bake for 18 to 20 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in center comes out clean. Cool cupcakes in muffin cups on a wire rack for 5 minutes. Remove cupcakes from muffin tins. Cool completely on wire racks.
5. Just before serving, insert the tip of whipped cream into the top of the cupcake and put about a Tablespoon into the cupcake.
6. For each serving, top the cupcake with ice cream and toppings. Enjoy!

May Dinner Party

Appetizer- Steamed Dos Equis Clams (from Café Central in El Paso Texas- p. 70)



This was delicious! I made the sauce with sautéed onions, jalapenos, tomatoes and- clearly- Dos Equis beer. All that was cooked to yumminess, clams were added and the result was great. The perfect level of spiciness and flavor!

Soup- The Shed Posole (from The Shed in Santa Fen, NM- p. 101)



Posole is one of Andrew’s favorite things ever. If you don’t know, it is a fairly simple soup of pork shoulder, hominy and broth. Sound simple, right? The one time I had tried before was truly an epic fail. And I rarely fail, so I never attempted again. This one? SUCCESS!!!! Everyone loved it, especially Andrew. As good as his mom’s!

Entrée- Braised and Pulled Pork with Orange-Honey Barbecue Sauce (from Brittlebush Bar &Grill in Scottsdale AZ- p. 153)
Side- Goat Cheese- Stuffed Poblano Chiles with Tomato Chipotle Sauce (from Hilton of Santa Fe in Santa Fe, NM- p. 179)



The pork took many steps- marinating overnight, roasting vegetables, slow roasting and braising for 6 hours, then shredding it. I forgot to take it out of the oven once all my friends were over, so it overcooked by an hour or two, and was a little dry, but the homemade BBQ gave it so good flavor plus a little moistness it needed.

Eeek! Chile rellenos! I roasted the chiles and stuffed them with goat cheese, cream cheese, corn, cried cranberries, chipotle powder, mint, basil… Sound like a bit much, but it all came together really well. Traditionally chile rellenos’ batter has whipped eggs whites folded in (folding things in always makes me a little nervous), but I did it and it was a great, fluffy batter that fried up perfectly. And all served with a homemade tomato- chipotle sauce.

Dessert- White Chocolate Mousse with Berries (from Heartline Café in Sedona, AZ)



I was way more comfortable after already conquering the scary mousse earlier in the cookbook. Whipping, folding, etc- no big deal! And the white chocolate mousse was light and airy and… yummy! The berry sauce was a bit tart for some, but a good combination with the sweetness of the mousse.